Forgotten Childhood
by rubisora18117
Summary: After an argument, Mokuba runs away. In the process of trying to find Mokuba, Kaiba drags Yuugi and friends into his sceret past. What does Jonouchi have to do with this newly discovered past? Very mild puppyshipping
1. The Argument

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! If I did, I would be rich as heck and I wouldn't let 4 Kids do the dub… That way, we could watch the first series… I also don't own Clue.

**Summary:** After an argument, Mokuba runs away. In the process of getting Mokuba, Kaiba drags Yuugi and friends into his dark past. What does Jonouchi have to do with this?

**Random talk: **I'm back with another fic where Mokuba has an I-hate-the-world attitude! If I make another one, people might think I love to put the little guy in pain… (Which is half-true…) Strange thing is, Mokuba isn't going to be appearing that much…

**Notes:** I guess this fic could be considered AU… (alternate universe, for those who don't know) You'll see why by the end of the chapter. Japanese names will be used. I know there are so many ways to spell Jonouchi's name, so I'm using the Shonen Jump version. It makes it easier for me. Takes place after Battle City, but before Doom. This way we don't have to worry about Egyptian Arc. But, they do know a little about the yamis' past. I put the translation of some Japanese words at the end of the fic. I didn't do the more obvious ones, like nii-sama. If you don't know what some words are, look them up or ask in a review.

**Warnings:** Slight OOC, some language (later chapters, both in English and Japanese), AU, and shonen-ai (Kaiba x Jonouchi).

**Dedication:** This fic goes to gyrrlgenius for helping me come up with the idea that started this fic, being my editor, and being my second beta. Also dedicated to changeofheart18782 for being my original beta!

* * *

Chapter 1

The Argument

"Come on, nii-sama!" Mokuba yelled at his older brother. "It won't be that bad if you tell the world! At least tell the teachers so they would believe me!"

"How many times must I tell you?" Kaiba asked calmly as he typed. "You know what could happen to Kaiba Corp."

"You always say that! We don't know what really would happen if you told the world that-"

"That's enough Mokuba," Kaiba snapped. "We can't take that risk."

"We? You mean _you_ can't take that risk! I'm sick of this! I hate you nii-sama!" With that said, Mokuba ran out of Kaiba's office. This left Kaiba, for once, speechless. Several minutes passed before Kaiba regained his composure.

"He has never reacted that way before. I'll talk to him later. I have work that I need to get back to." Kaiba did just that--went back to his work.

* * *

It was about 10 at night by the time Kaiba had arrived at his manor. Knowing his little brother, Mokuba would still be playing video games or drawing something. At least, that's what Kaiba was hoping to find. What the young CEO saw when he reached Mokuba's room were random items all over the large room and bed sheets tied together; one end attached to a bed post and the other end hanging out the large, open window. Kaiba walked around the room to see if Mokuba left any clues as to where he was heading. All Kaiba could find that gave him any hints was a letter left by Mokuba. 

Dear Seto,

I'm sick of living in your shadow and having to live a lie. I'm leaving to find someone who respects me. Don't even bother looking for me. If you do find me, there's no way I'm coming back here. I hate you.

Sayonara (1),

Your once little brother, Mokuba

* * *

"That's the tenth time you won this night, Yuugi!" Jonouchi yelled. The gang, which included Jonouchi, Yuugi, Honda, Anzu, and Ryou was over at the Kame Game Shop. They were playing Clue, and they did not realize what time it was. 

"What else do you expect!" Honda exclaimed. "They don't call him the King of Games for nothing!"

"You do have a point," Jonouchi replied.

"It's getting late, guys," Anzu said. "My parents must be worried sick about me!"

"Same goes for me," Honda said.

"Awww… You guys are leaving already?" Jonouchi moaned. "Wait--what time is it?"

"10:15," Anzu replied.

"It's that late already!?" Jonouchi yelled. "I should be going, too! My dad's going to kill me if I'm late again!"

"Might as well go," Ryou said. "Thank you, Yuugi-kun, for your hospitality."

"Don't mention it!" Yuugi said, smiling. "I'll walk you down to the door."

The five friends walked down the stairs to the store portion of the building, still talking and joking around. Their conversations were interrupted by a knock on the door. Everyone looked at the door, wondering why someone would be visiting at this time of night. Yuugi opened the door, only to see a person that no one suspected would return for a second visit to the little store.

"Kaiba-kun, what brings you here?" Yuugi asked. As soon as the other four people on the stairs heard this question, they readied themselves to hold back what they thought would be a frustrated Jonouchi.

"Is Mokuba here?" Kaiba asked.

"Does it look like he's here?" Honda asked sarcastically.

"I'm not in the mood for this… I need to find Mokuba…."

"Wait!" Yuugi yelled. "Did he get kidnapped again? Maybe we could help you find him!"

"For one thing, I don't need your help. For another, Mokuba ran away."

"The kid finally saw what a jerk you really are and got smart enough to know not to live with you!" Jonouchi exclaimed, beaming. This got him pinned against the wall by the insulted brunette in less than a minute.

"Don't you dare say that again…" Kaiba said, his voice dripping with venom.

"Hey, let him go!" Honda yelled. Kaiba replied by throwing the blond duelist.

"Why don't you explain why Mokuba-kun ran away," Yuugi said, trying to calm the CEO down.

"No," Kaiba started and began to walk to the door. As he reached the exit to the shop, a realization hit him. He had nobody else he could turn to and trust, if only on a relative basis. "Alright," Kaiba sighed. "We had an argument today. Before any of you say anything, this wasn't any normal argument you would have with anybody. This is what happened…."

_Flashback _

_Kaiba was typing on his computer, trying to figure out why these people couldn't figure out how to fix simple bugs in a basic software program. All of a sudden, Mokuba walked in and closed the door._

_"What is it, Mokuba?" Kaiba asked, not looking up from his screen._

_"You know that science project I had in school?" Mokuba asked. Kaiba just nodded. "Well, the teacher said we had to do most of the work on the visual and written report. And you know that I worked on that project really hard." Another nod from the elder Kaiba. "The teacher had the nerve to say that you did all of my report because it was too complex for me! When I told her that I did all the work with no help, she gave me detention! Can you believe that?! She thinks that just because I'm the younger brother of a so-called genius, it means I'm stupid!"_

_"It might help if you didn't do it on something that a third year high school student would do," Kaiba said._

_"But I thought it would be cool if I did that! All the other kids did volcanoes or made rocket ships out of bottles."_

_"Let me guess, you want me to announce that I wasn't the one who made almost all of Kaiba Corp technology and that it was my little brother who did?"_

_"Exactly! The world deserves to know the truth! I mean, they call you a child prodigy when we both know that I design **and** make the prototype for most of our products!"_

"_No, Mokuba."_

"_Come on, nii-sama! It won't be that bad if you tell the world! At least tell the teachers so they would believe me!"_

_"How many times must I tell you? You know what could happen to Kaiba Corp."_

_"You always say that! We don't know what really would happen if you told the world that-"_

_"That's enough Mokuba," Kaiba snapped. "We can't take that risk."_

_"We? You mean **you** can't take that risk! I'm sick of this! I hate you, nii-sama!"_

_End Flashback _

"I'm lost," Jonouchi said. "If what you said is true, that means the gaki (2) made the duel disks…"

"So there is something in that head of yours besides air…" Kaiba said. Once more, Honda had to hold Jonouchi back from tackling the CEO. "Yes, Mokuba designed both the prototype and latest duel disks. He showed me the designs before that incident at Duelist Kingdom."

"And those virtual pods?" Anzu asked. "Mokuba said that you made them, and he would sneak in your lab as you worked on them."

"I sometimes build the prototype of our products so Mokuba can work on his homework and be a normal kid. He would sneak into my private lab just to make sure the pods were being built right."

"Okay, I think I got it," Jonouchi said. "Just to be sure, Mokuba is smarter than Kaiba. Am I right?"

"For once," Kaiba said, letting go of most of his pride, "the inu is correct twice in five minutes."

* * *

TBC

(1) Sayonara: Everybody knows what this word means "Goodbye". In Japan, however, the polite way to say goodbye is "Ja matte, ne?", which literally means "see you later, right?". Saying "sayonara" essentially means saying "goodbye forever (or at least a very long period of time).

(2) gaki – brat

**Next time:** Things go from bad to worst when someone brings up some bad news about Mokuba. So, what does Kaiba do? He does the one thing he never thought he would ever do…

**Random talk: **I think that's a good place to end. I hope I didn't rush things… Mokuba won't be returning until chapter 3 or 4. Also, I'll try to update every Friday. (That is, if my homework will allow me to do that…) The reason I posted today was because I might not go home tomorrow. Please don't get mad at me about Kaiba agreeing with Jonouchi with Mokuba's intelligence level. You have to take into consideration that Mokuba was designing the hardware while Kaiba was programming the games. So from Kaiba's prospective, Mokuba is smarter than he is. Well, review people! Praises cheer me up while flames make me want to delete fics. If I made you cry at any part during this fic, let me know! I count them as praises for some odd reason… See ya in the next chapter!

Rubi-chan

**Gyrrlgenius' Random Note: **I like doing this. It's fun. Actually, I beta'd this fic, as well as changeofheart18782. She didn't do a very good job grammar-editing, though. Bad grammar is a sin worse than sloth, pride, envy, lust, greed, wrath, and gluttony. Granted, that's going a little far…but, it's a nice metaphor, don't you think? Oh, and feel free to leave comments to me in your review. ;) I like it when people talk to me. No problems with that, right?


	2. Noa Explains All

**Disclaimer:** Nope, still don't own Yu-Gi-Oh.

**Random Talk: **Yay! Chapter two! Also, my weird, demented mind really is active in this chapter for some odd reason. It will help explain Mokuba's reactions later. And I added some of my weird sense of humor as well! Also, the title for this chapter speaks for itself. I do have an announcement. I only have one beta now since I have the strangest feeling gyrrlgenius wants nothing to do with me any more.

**Warnings: **Slight OOC, some language (later), AU, and a little shonen-ai later (Kaiba x Jonouchi).

* * *

Chapter 2

Noa Explains All

"Okay, I think I got it," Jonouchi said. "Just to be sure, Mokuba is smarter than Kaiba. Am I right?"

"For once," Kaiba said, "the inu is correct twice in five minutes."

"Stop calling– wait, I was right?" Jonouchi asked midway through his complaint. Kaiba just nodded.

"Was Mokuba always this smart?" Honda asked.

"No," Kaiba said, thinking he was playing 20 questions. "His true intelligence appeared when he was about seven or eight. It's funny how people didn't want to adopt Mokuba because they said he wasn't a genius like I was."

"So, you don't have any clues as to where Mokuba-kun could have gone to, right?" Yuugi asked.

"Correct," Kaiba stated. "All he left was a note." All six teens sat in silence, when Kaiba's laptop made a sound. Kaiba opened his laptop and started to open his inbox.

"Great," Kaiba sighed. "They always e-mail me whenever something goes wrong."

"Ah, but I'm not one of your workers," a familiar voice came from the laptop.

"What the heck are you doing in my laptop, Noa!" Kaiba yelled at the machine. Kaiba Noa appeared on the screen, smirking. Everyone gathered around the laptop to see the virtual boy.

"I e-mailed myself to your laptop," Noa stated. "How else do you think I got here?"

"Okay, then what are you doing _here_!" Honda yelled. "I thought you were deleted when the virtual world blew up!"

"Mokuba never told you guys?"

"Tell us what, Noa?" Jonouchi said, twitching

"When I was borrowing Mokuba's body, Mokuba made a digital pathway to his computer back at the manor. So I transferred my information to his computer at the last second. That's enough with the past, let's talk about the present."

"What do you mean?" Anzu asked.

"I'm sure you know Mokuba's missing and why he is," Noa said. Everyone nodded. "I have a good idea where he might be."

"Tell me, Noa!" Kaiba yelled.

"Alright, alright! There's no need to yell," Noa said. "It actually makes sense when you think about it. Mokuba keeps talking about where he used to live when your father was still alive. He said that it was at that house that he felt the safest. Back when he had a real family."

"You're kidding me, right?" Kaiba said with a worried tone. "That area is probably the least safest place in all of Domino!"

"It can't be that bad," Honda said.

"No, it is," Noa said. "I could tell just by the way Mokuba described it. He said that a lot of kidnappings and gang wars happen in that area nowadays."

"How much did Mokuba tell you?" Kaiba asked.

"Just enough to be considered a journal. Mokuba wants someone to talk to, not something to write down his sorrows. I think Psychiatrist number three told him that."

"Number three?" Anzu said. Everyone except for Kaiba and Noa had a worried look on their face.

"Yes," Noa said. "Why don't you explain, Seto?"

"Ever since he was nine, Mokuba was known to have an unstable mind," Kaiba said calmly. "From the time people started to notice this problem, Mokuba has been going to numerous psychiatrists. So far, he's been to twelve different ones."

"You mean that the gaki (1) has been to six different psychiatrists per year?" Honda asked horrified.

"Just about," Noa replied. "Oh, almost forgot to tell you this. Mokuba didn't take his medication with him."

"Great, more worries," Kaiba said.

"Wait, so the kid's a genius, goes to psychiatrists, and takes medicine?" Jonouchi asked. "Is there anything else we should know about? Like, what the medicine is for…"

"Most of them are to keep him sane," Kaiba said reluctantly. "But what I'm worried about is what happens when he doesn't take the ones for his depression and ADD…"

"Is it even possible to have ADD and be depressed at the same time?" Honda asked bewildered.

"Evidently, yes," Noa said. "He acts really weird if he doesn't take all of his pills. Let's just say you guys have more worries about Mokuba taking over the world than anyone else. He's as worse as the evil version of that white spiky haired guy. At least from what Mokuba tells me about him… "

"I didn't know someone could be as evil as my yami," Ryou said in amazement.

"Why do you think Seto is actually giving Mokuba medicine when he doesn't even take his for his insomnia and migraines? Plus, he doesn't even take the proper procedure for his-" Noa asked.

"That's enough, Noa," Kaiba said, turning off his computer.

"Hey! Don't you-" Noa managed to say before the computer was shut down.

Everyone was quite for some time. The new information about the Kaiba brothers was overwhelming for Yuugi-tachi. (2)

"Seems like I do need your help," Kaiba interrupted the silence. "So, are you going to help or what?"

"Kids run away all the time," Anzu said. "He might be back tomorrow morning."

"I highly doubt it. Well? I'm still waiting for an answer."

"We're in," Yuugi answering for everyone. "Where are we going to meet?"

"If I remember correctly, there was a bus stop five blocks from the house," Kaiba said. The CEO starting writing something on a piece of paper. "I have a meeting tomorrow that won't get out until 1:30. Be at that bus stop at 2:30. I will call if Mokuba does return. And if Mokuba comes here, call me on my cell." He then gave the paper to Yuugi and left the small shop without saying goodbye.

"Jerk!" Jonouchi yelled. "He could have at least said thanks for agreeing to help find the gaki."

"Hey, the street Kaiba gave us sounds familiar," Anzu said.

"It should," Honda said as he took the paper from the short duelist. "Hey, Jonouchi. Look at the street Kaiba gave us."

Jonouchi snatched the paper from Honda. "You're kidding me," Jonouchi said in shock.

"What's wrong?" Yuugi asked.

"That bus stop is only a block away from my apartment!"

* * *

TBC

(1) gaki – brat

(2) Yuugi-tachi – lit. Yuugi and company, or Yuugi and friends

**Next time:** What happened to Mokuba when he left Kaiba hanging at Kaiba Corp? And exactly how insane is he?

**Random Talk: **I warned you that my weird, demented mind was working overtime for this chapter… That's why this chapter is kinda short. If I continued, I know I would have had Noa tell more about Mokuba's dark secrets that I haven't thought of yet. But it does give a reason for the big change in the little guy's behavior from the first series to Duelist Kingdom besides the fact Yami saved him.

Sorry to say this, guys, but I'll have to post on Thursday next week, again… I'm going on vacation, and I have no clue if there is no internet up there. So, to be better safe than sorry, I'm just posting before I leave!

Am I the only one who hates this new thing that you can't respond to any reviews in your fics? Let me just say, it sucks! You can only reply to reviews if the reviewer has an account… Sorry guys that don't have an account… So, please still review! I know people are reading this! Last I checked, I had 104 hits and only 5 reviews! It makes me cry!

That's it for this chapter! See ya then!

Rubi-chan


	3. Rou

**Disclaimer:** Don't own Yu-Gi-Oh. Sad, isn't it? Guess not…

**Random Talk: **My weird, demented mind is still working overtime. This chapter is all about Mokuba after he left Kaiba's office. I liked typing this chapter because it has one of my favorite villains that only appear in the first series.

**Warnings: **Slight OOC, some language (both English and Japanese), AU, and slight shonen-ai (Kaiba x Jonouchi later).

* * *

Chapter 3

Rou

"I hate you nii-sama!" Mokuba yelled and ran out of Kaiba's office. Mokuba was sick of having to hide his true intelligence from the world. He technically didn't even need to go to school; he was taking collage classes already! All he asked for was to have Kaiba tell the school about how smart he really was.

"Master Mokuba, are you all right?" Mokuba's driver asked when Mokuba came out to the limo.

"I'm fine," Mokuba said giving a fake, innocent smile. The young boy learned quickly he had to hide his true feelings just so he wouldn't have to deal with what he called "the stupidity of adults". "Let's go home. I'm kinda tired, anyway."

"Of course," the driver said as he opened the limo door.

* * *

"It's not fair, Noa!" Mokuba yelled to his virtual stepbrother. 

"Calm down, Mokuba!" Noa exclaimed. "If someone was still here, they'll be wondering what's going on up here!"

"I don't care!" Mokuba yelled even louder as he threw some books across the room. Noa sighed. His little stepbrother was having another tantrum that left his room a disaster area. At least this time Mokuba didn't let the bookcase crash into a nearby window. The eldest Kaiba had to deal with the Police the last time that happened.

"Well, you only have seven more years before you can live on your own"

"I can't wait that long!"

"You have to. There's no other way you can leave this house so you can live on your own."

"But there is. I can run away!" Mokuba then started to pack clothing, paper, pencils, and other little things.

"Mokuba, think for a moment. What you're planing is insane! For one thing you could die. For another thing, what are you going to do when you run out of medicine?"

"Who said I was going to take my medicine?" Mokuba asked as he tied his bed sheets to make a makeshift rope.

"That's it! You're definitely insane! You know what happens when you don't take your medicine!"

"So? Well, I'm off!" Mokuba threw one end of his rope out the window closest to his bed. "How could I forget the note for my so called nii-sama…"

"Mokuba, please, rethink this," Noa pleaded one last time as he watched Mokuba write his farewell note to Kaiba.

"I'm going, and that's that! Sayonara Noa! Thanks for being there for me!" Mokuba said before he climbed down the rope. The young boy ran off into the approaching night. There was only one place he wanted to be; a place he called home.

* * *

Mokuba woke the next day in an abandoned house. Besides the fact no one has lived in the house for six years, it was still in good condition. What surprised Mokuba the most was that it was still standing. He thought that the old house would have been torn down by then to make room for more apartments. Still, he was happy that his old home was still standing. 

"What are you doing here, you gaki?" someone yelled. Mokuba looked at the doorway to see a person that looked like he was in high school. The gray uniform with magenta trim showed that he went to Rintama High School. Any other eleven-year-old kid would have been afraid of the thug-like boy, but Mokuba didn't care.

"Sleeping in my room," Mokuba said calmly.

"Your room?" the other asked. "This place doesn't even belong to you! Get over here, kid! You talk to the real owner of this place!" Mokuba was yanked off the floor by the other and was dragged by his long hair. The stranger led the ebony-haired kid out to the backyard. The only person out there was a teenager with blue hair that was tied back into a mini ponytail and gray eyes. He had numerous piercing in his left ear. This guy looked like he was the type that people avoided for a good reason.

"I found him inside, Hirutani," the guy dragging Mokuba said. He tossed Mokuba in front of Hirutani, smirking. "He says that he was sleeping in _his_ room."

"Now did he?" Hirutani said. "Where did you get the idea that this was your place? You see, I need a new hideout. This place is perfect because no one really comes here."

"Sorry to burst your bubble," Mokuba said, "but you don't own this house. No one has bought this place since my dad died. So, this house technically belongs to my so called nii-sama."

"Is that so?" Hirutani asked. He was now interested with the little boy. "Leave. I want to talk to the gaki alone." The other guy walked away to talk with the other gang members about what's going on.

"Your name is Hirutani, right?" Mokuba asked.

"Correct. Now, what were you saying about this place?"

"I lived here until I was five. That's when my father died, and I was forced to stay with my relatives with nii-sama. Then, our generous relatives spent all of our inheritance and left us in an orphanage. A few months after arriving at that cursed place, we were adopted. That's when our time in hell started. Six years have passed, and no one has bought this house. So, it belongs to either our relatives or Seto."

"Interesting… What's your name, gaki?"

"Mokuba."

"Well, Mokuba, tell your _nii-sama_ that this house is being used."

"Whatever. I'm not going to be seeing him in real life any more. The closest I'm going to see him from now on is on TV…"

"Okay. Then get lost."

"Hey, Hirutani!" a member of the gang yelled as he ran. "For some odd reason the bikes won't work, even yours!"

"You're kidding me," Hirutani said. "If I find out you're lying…"

"I'm telling the truth! You can look for yourself!" The gang member led Hirutani out to the front where a few parked motorcycles were located. Mokuba watched the gang from the front door in curiosity. The little kid had to hold back his laughter from watching various gang members try to start up the motorcycles. Eventually, they gave up.

"I can fix them, if you want," Mokuba said.

"Heh, this should be a good laugh," Hirutani said. "Let's see what you can do."

Mokuba walked up to the machine and started to inspect it. It was a good thing he brought some tools because the motorcycle looked like it hasn't had a tune-up in years. The gang watched in amazement as Mokuba fixed one motorcycle after another. In about an half-hour, all the machines were working as if it was new. Everyone tried out the fixed machines as soon as Mokuba was finished.

"You're something, kid," Hirutani said. "What was your name again? Mokuko?"

"No, it's Mokuba."

"Got a last name? Mokuba is too girly, if you ask me."

"I was Ryujima before I was adopted. You don't want to know my new last name."

"Heh, try me."

"It's Kaiba."

Hirutani was quite for some time before he started laughing. "I knew you looked familiar. So why did a rich kid running away?"

"Seto is still refusing to tell the press that I designed most of Kaiba Corp.'s products. I just wanted some recognition of some kind. Everyone just sees me as the younger brother of Kaiba Seto, the child prodigy. No one knows that I'm the real prodigy and Seto is just a fake. Sure, he's smart, but not as smart as me."

"That's something you don't hear everyday; little brother of supposed genius is the true prodigy," Hirutani said to himself. He couldn't help but smirk.

"So, are you going to leave me alone or what?"

"Tell you what kid. How about you join us? You can always get revenge on your brother."

"Whatever. I have nothing better to do."

"Good. But we need to give you a new name first. Like I said before, Mokuba is too girly. Let's see, what to name you… I got it, Rou (1)."

"I really don't care what you call me."

"Fine, Rou. Hop on before someone sees you. And you might want to hold tight." Mokuba climbed onto the back of Hirutani's motorcycle, wrapping his arms around the elder boy. He then noticed a familiar blond about a block away.

"Jonouchi no yarou, (2)" Mokuba growled. Hirutani looked in the direction the little boy was looking at and smirked.

"So you know him too. Let's get out of here before he sees you with us."

Hirutani drove off at max speed down a road followed by the other gang members. Unknown to Hirutani, Jonouchi did see his old gang with Mokuba. But he was too far to identify the raven-haired child. So, the blond duelist did nothing.

* * *

TBC

(1) Rou – trouble

(2) Jonouchi no yarou – Found this little phrase on a site! Evidently, Mokuba calls Jonouchi this. It translates to "that bastard Jonouchi". That kid has some mouth…

**Next time:** Yuugi-tachi are in for a little surprise when the go to Kaiba's old neighborhood.

**Random talk: **And chapter three comes to a finish! This chapter was kinda longer than the other two. Or, at least I think it is… Yes, Hirutani did have blue hair, gray eyes, and has his ears pierced. He has five loop earrings on his left ear. (Each loop is a different color. It kinda looks like a rainbow!) I just know someone is going to ask that question. Like I said, I liked typing this chapter. Well, that's it for Mokuba for now. I will continue to call him Mokuba although the gang members will address him as Rou. Sorry for the nickname… It was the best I could come up with… (It was Raven at first…) Hope I still have people reading after this chapter! I think I might have committed author suicide with this chapter. Please no flames, Mokuba fans! Mokuba is my third favorite character, so I even think I made Mokuba too weird.

Sorry I didn't post sooner... I actually didn't go on my little vacation... My excuse is I got a new game for my Nintendo DS! Who knew Nintendogs was so much fun? (I got a Shiba Inu named Katsuya and a brown Lab named Seto! I'm so bad... )

**IMPORTANT NOTE: **Okay, I'm barely geting any reviews here! I'm changing how I post! From now on, I'll post _after _I get at least 10 reviews for each chapter! By my standards, that's a lot! For crying out loud, I only got 5 reviews for the first chapter! Thanks to the few that actually review, for doing what I say and not what I do. I am truely sorry, guys. It's just makes me mad that I get all these hits but so little reviews. The bright side, if I'm in a good mood, I might just change my mind. (In otherwords, ya need ta try and convince me otherwise...)

Rubi-chan


	4. Kudamono and Ryujima

**Disclaimer:** I still don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, okay!

**Random Talk: **I give up on you guys! It seems that nothing I do will make you review! So, I'm going back to how I posted before. Meaning, I'll try to post every Friday.

This chapter is interesting, but I may lose some readers… I added an OC that has a somewhat important role. Also, this is a reminder that this fic is AU. (Aren't all fics AU anyway?) So, keep this in mind before you flame me for some of the things in here.

**Warnings: **I am no longer going through the list unless something new comes up. So, check the past chapters for the warning.

* * *

Chapter 4

Kudamono and Ryujima

Kaiba waited by the bus stop for Yuugi and his friends. He kept looking at his watch, hoping the others would be there soon. His outfit was something people would not think he would even have. He wore a normal white T-shirt, khaki cargo pants, white tennis shoes, and a blue baseball cap. Kaiba never liked the cap because he had a weird habit of pulling it down so you couldn't see his eyes. He already did this action about five times since he arrived at the meeting spot 20 minutes ago. Just when he was going to straiten the cap once more, a bus pulled up. Kaiba looked up to see Yuugi and Honda come out of the bus.

"Is that you, Kaiba-kun?" Yuugi asked.

"Who else would it be?" Kaiba asked sarcastically. "Where are your other cheerleaders?"

"Anzu said she had dance practice, and Ryou still had to do that essay for history," Yuugi said.

"Jonouchi said he'll be here as soon as he can," Honda said.

"Figures that the inu would be late," Kaiba said, smirking.

"Who says I'm late?" Jonouchi asked, standing next to Kaiba. This made Kaiba jump a little, but no one notice.

"So the make inu decided to come on time," Kaiba said.

"That's not how you treat someone who's helping you!" Jonouchi yelled.

"Whatever," Kaiba said as he walked down the street. "You coming or what?" This made the other three trail the young CEO.

"Would it hurt to be nice for once?" Jonouchi asked. Kaiba didn't reply. So, the four of them walked in silence until they reached their destination.

The house was relatively old, but looked as if someone took care of it. Surrounding the two-floor house were apartments, which made is stick out even more.

"We're here," Kaiba said. Yuugi and Honda analyzed the house while Jonouchi stood in shock with his mouth open. "You know, it is impolite to leave your mouth open."

"There's no way you lived here!" Jonouchi yelled. "I knew the family that lived here before! There's no way a bastard like you are related to them!"

"You really are dense if you still haven't figured it out yet," Kaiba said coldly.

"I am not dense!"

"What are you doing here, Katsu-kun?" an old lady asked from behind Honda. Everyone turned to face the granny-like woman.

"Hello, Obaa-san," (1) Jonouchi said. "Guys, this is Kudamono Ichigo (2), but everyone around here calls her Obaa-san."

"Nice to meet you," Yuugi said bowing. "I'm Mutou Yuugi."

"And I'm Honda Hiroto."

"Nice to meet you both," Ichigo said. "Now, what are you doing here?"

"Just looking for this guy's little brother," Jonouchi said, pointing to Kaiba who was standing behind him.

"Hello, Obaa-san," Kaiba said, bowing.

"Is that you, Seto-chan?" Ichigo asked. Kaiba just nodded. "You're polite as ever. And look how handsome you turned out!"

"Wait, you know Kaiba?" Jonouchi asked.

"Of course! You should remember him! He lived in that house. You two were such good friends after his mother died."

"This has got to be a bad dream," Jonouchi said. "There's no way he could be the weak, pathetic Seto I knew."

"I'm going to ignore what you just said," Kaiba said, sending a glare to the blond.

"Wait, Kaiba was weak and pathetic?" Honda asked, stifling a laugh.

"Yeah," Jonouchi said. "Everyone kept bullying him. Not once did I ever see him cry. Well, except for that one time…"

"Mutt, if you say anymore, I will give you a demonstration on what it felt like before I met you..."

"So you are really Ryujima Seto?" (3) Jonouchi said, wide eyed.

"Yes," Kaiba said, lowering his gaze to the ground.

"Those two were inseparable as soon as they became friends!" Ichigo said, laughing. "Katsu-kun would protect Seto-chan from the bullies, while Seto-chan would hide!"

"I remember that!" Jonouchi said. "Sweet! I have blackmail that I never knew I even had!"

"Jonouchi-kun!" Yuugi yelled. "I can't believe you would do that! Especially since you two were friends!"

"I could care less at this moment," Kaiba said coldly. "All that matters is finding Mokuba."

"I'm sure Moku-chan is fine," Ichigo said. "Why don't you all come over to my apartment for lunch. And I won't take no for an answer. Besides, Seto-chan looks like he haven't eaten in a week!"

"Actually, I haven't eaten in four days…" Kaiba replied.

"How the heck do you survive?" Jonouchi questioned.

"You know, a human can live about 30 days without food… (4) " Kaiba said.

"Why would anyone do that?" Jonouchi asked stupidly.

"Well, I'm still going to put some meat on those bones!" Ichigo exclaimed. "I know your mother would be concerned if she saw how skinny you are!"

"I know you won't let me go until I say yes…" Kaiba muttered. "Fine, let's go…"

* * *

Ichigo's apartment didn't look like what one would think an old lady's house would be. It was a normal economy class apartment (5) with a refrigerator, table with a few chairs, a small television, and a small desk with countless pictures. As Yuugi and Honda looked at the pictures, a small Shiba Inu with golden fur and brown eyes ran up and started to bark at the shortest member of the group. 

"What's wrong girl?" Yuugi asked.

"Kasutera (6) just wants you to pet _him_," Kaiba stated.

"I'm surprised you remembered his name…" Jonouchi muttered.

"I hope he would remember him… He did name Kasutera," Ichigo said, walking up with a tray of ice tea, "just as you named Sato (7)!"

"Sato?" Honda asked, grabbing a glass of ice tea.

"Yes, Sato. My cat." Just as Ichigo said this, a brown cat with sapphire blue eyes stalked out of one of the rooms. "But I would be careful with him."

"What's the worst a cat can do?" Honda said while picking up Sato. Sato decided he didn't like the pointy brunet and scratched said brunette's face. This caused Honda to scream and drop the cat and his glass.

"Obaa-san did warn you…" Jonouchi said, laughing. "Sato never did like people he didn't know. Took him awhile to get to know us enough so he wouldn't scratch us."

"Sounds like someone else we know…" Honda mumbled, looking at Kaiba.

"I'm sorry, Obaa-san," Kaiba said, "but can we finish up, please. I really would like to find Mokuba before it gets dark."

"We're just talking," Ichigo said. "I'm sure your friends would like to hear more about you and Kastu-kun. By the sounds of it, you two don't talk about the past."

"Maybe because Kaiba didn't tell me that he was really Ryujima," Jonouchi said, glaring at Kaiba.

"You seemed content with your new friends that I thought you did not need me anymore…"

"What ever gave you that idea!" Jonouchi asked. "Just because I'm hanging with other people doesn't mean I don't want to be friends with you any more!"

"Whatever…" Kaiba muttered. "I need to find Mokuba… When you people are done talking, you can give me a call and maybe we can meet up somewhere… It was nice seeing you again, Obaa-san."

"Be careful, Seto-chan."

"I'm no longer the little kid that requires help every second." With that said, the young CEO left the small apartment.

"The sad thing is, you're still little kid…" Ichigo said sadly. "Now, who wants to hear about Kastu-kun and Seto-chan?"

* * *

TBC

(1) Obaa-san – Grandmother or old lady, depending on the context. In this case, it would be grandmother.

(2) Kudamono Ichigo – Weird name… Her first name means strawberry and her last name means fruit. So, the translation (Western style) is strawberry fruit.

(3) Ryujima – There is no translation for this word that I know of. It's just something I made up that sounded Japanese. Plus I needed to give Seto and Mokuba a last name before it changed to Kaiba…

(4) 30 days without food – True fact! A human can live three to four weeks without food! Yay for Human Anatomy and Physiology class! (Plus I heard it years ago, only to be confirmed a few days ago.)

(5) Normal economy class apartment – It's just a small apartment made for a small family of one, two, or three. Well, it seems like it would be to me… All there is two rooms for sleeping or anything you want, kitchen were you eat as well, a bathroom and shower room.

(6) Kasutera – Cheesecake. (Strange name for a dog…)

(7) Sato – Village. (Very strange name for a cat…)

**Next time:** Jonouchi and Kaiba's history is revealed.

**Random talk: **Wow… That's a lot of notes just for one chapter… The notes take up about one eighth of the whole chapter! This was one of the hardest chapters to write so far… It was just hard to get Seto and company to the apartment. Well, stay tuned for the next chapter!

Rubi-chan


	5. Secret Past

**Disclaimer: **Again, I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh. If I did, it would have more hints of shonen-ai in it…

**Random talk:** I hope there are still readers out there… There's something I keep failing to tell you guys. I typed these chapters up ahead of time. If I typed them up as I post, it would take months until you guys get the next chapter! Also, almost all of this chapter is flashbacks.

**Note:** Italicize sections mean flashback story mode.

* * *

Chapter 5

Secret Past

"Now, where to start…" Ichigo said to herself. "I'm going to take a wild guess and say that Katsu-kun didn't tell you anything about growing up…"

"No," Honda said.

"Why don't you start from the beginning?" Yuugi suggested.

"That's a good idea," Ichigo said. "Is that fine with you, Katsu-kun?"

"I'm not the one who would be embarrassed," Jonouchi said. "With all the stories you have, Obaa-san, Kaiba would be the one embarrassed!"

"The stories are that bad?" Honda asked.

"Depends on the story… There are a few that he would kill anyone who found out…"

"And those stories you would hate me for telling as well!" Ichigo said, laughing.

"Oh… Yeah… I would, wouldn't I…? Just start the stories, Obaa-san!"

"Okay, okay… Let me start before they became friends…"

* * *

_"Hey! Bookworm!" a boy yelled to another boy who was reading a book. "I know you heard me!"_

_"I have a name," the boy reading said not looking up. "It's Ryujima Seto…"_

_"Do you think I care? We need an extra player to play soccer. You're the only one left for us to choose."_

_"Who says I want to play?"_

_"You don't have a choice! I need another player, and you're it!" The boy snatched the book from little Seto and flipped through it. "Where's the pictures?"_

_"Give that back, Tomi! It doesn't have picture!" Seto yelled as he tried to get his book back._

_"What kind of book doesn't have pictures?" Tomi asked, laughing as he kept the book from the young brunette. They kept this up for a few minutes until Tomi ripped the book._

_"Tomi! How could you?" Seto asked as he looked in horror at his book. "I got that for my birthday…"_

_"Oh well… Come on! I still need that extra player."

* * *

_

"I remember that," Jonouchi said. "No one wanted to mess with Tomi because he would find a way to torment us later. Tomi always loved to pick on Kaiba because he was smarter than almost everyone there… I mean, Kaiba was only four and already reading books without pictures."

"What were you doing at the time?" Honda asked his friend.

"Waiting for Tomi to come back… I was also on his team… He forced all the other kids to play whatever he wanted to play."

"Why did he want Kaiba-kun to play?" Yuugi asked.

"Yeah… One person on the other team could have sat out…" Honda added.

"I'm guessing Seto-chan stopped playing soccer," Ichigo said sadly. "He was the best player in this neighborhood when he still lived here…"

"Yeah… There was an uneven number of players all the time," Jonouchi said. "Tomi always chose second because he would always get Kaiba…"

"Wow," Honda said. "Remind me next time we play soccer at school to some how get Kaiba on my team!"

"But Kaiba-kun doesn't even go to PE…"

"Why don't I tell you how Katsu-kun and Seto-chan actually became friends?"

"Good idea, Obaa-san."

* * *

_"Hey, Ryujima! What's wrong?" A young Jonouchi asked. He stared at Seto waiting for a reply. Young Seto was sitting in front of his house with his head hanging down._

_"Nothing," Seto said so softly that Jonouchi almost didn't hear it._

_"Well, come on! Tomi wants to play soccer again. You know what that means…"_

_"I don't feel like playing… Tell Tomi I'm sick…"_

_"Are you sure you don't want to play? I mean, Tomi is a jerk… But it's fun to play with you. Please?"_

_"I said I don't feel like playing!" Seto yelled at Jonouchi. The brunette lifted his head to glare at the blond. Jonouchi just stared at Seto, seeing something he never saw the other done before._

_"Why are you crying?" Jonouchi asked, watching the tears go down the young brunette's face._

_"It's none of your business!"_

_"Look, I don't like to see people cry… Just tell me what's wrong…"_

_"Fine! You want to know? Okaa-san just died an hour after she gave birth to my brother today!_ _She was going to take me to the park and see the fireworks… But now she won't even see the bamboo forest! This is the worst Tanabata ever!" _(1)

_"Wow… You have a baby brother! That's great!"_

_"Don't you get it? Okaa-san's dead!"_

_"I heard you the first time. I know that's bad, but I'm sure your okaa-san would want you to be happy. I mean, having a sibling is one of the greatest thing you can have!"_

_"Why do you even care?"_

_"Because we're friends!" Jonouchi gave Seto a friendly smile._

_"Really?" Seto asked hopefully. Jonouchi just nodded. Just this simple action made Seto smile.

* * *

_

"Who knew a tug like Jonouchi could make friends with a future CEO, ice king?" Honda joked.

"Seto-chan was a very sweet kid," Ichigo said. "And so was Moku-chan. They even help train Kasutera along with Katsu-kun and Shizu-chan. Who knew humans can hear dog whistles…" (2)

"Really… I remember that day…" Jonouchi said. "Mokuba was around three…"

* * *

_"Kasutera won't come here, Obaa-san!" a little Mokuba complained._

_"Why don't you try this," Ichigo said, handing Mokuba a little, red whistle. "It's a whistle that only dogs can hear. It might get Kasutera's attention…"_

_"Alright!" Mokuba yelled. He blew really hard into the whistle, but he couldn't hear anything. Kasutera, on the other hand, heard the whistle, and barked at Mokuba._

_"Hey, Mokuba," Seto said. "Why did you just blow that whistle?"_

_"Yeah… It's really annoying." Jonouchi said. Seto nodded in agreement_

_"You two heard that?" Ichigo asked. Both boys nodded._

_"Are you guys dogs?" Mokuba asked._

_"What are you talking about?" Jonouchi asked._

_"That was a dog whistle," Ichigo stated._

_"Dog whistle?" both boys yelled simultaneously.

* * *

_

"It took about a month to convince Mokuba that we weren't dogs," Jonouchi said while laughing.

"So why does Kaiba call you a dog if both of you hear the whistle?" Honda asked through his laughter.

"Hey, that is a good question," Jonouchi said. "I mean, I have every right to call him by some kind of dog name as well!"

"That's because you didn't even remember Seto-chan," Ichigo said. "Besides, you know he never likes to give everything away all at once. He always wanted to make it a game out of whatever you wanted to know. Maybe it was part of his new game."

"Wait, Kaiba-kun made everything a game?" Yuugi asked.

"Oh, yes. Seto-chan loved to play games as much as he loved reading and soccer. He would make some kind of guessing game with really hard clues… Rarely did anyone figure it out."

"Now that you mention it, some parts of that virtual game were familiar," Jonouchi said. (3) "Shizuka always did make Mokuba play the role of the princess when we played pretend."

"I always found that strange…" Ichigo added. "But it was so cute that you and Seto-chan ended up being the knights in shining armor while Shizuka would be the beast that kidnapped the princess."

"Shizuka played the monster?" Honda said in surprise.

"It was a phase she went through at one point…" Jonouchi replied. "Wait, what was the name Mokuba always used when he had to play the Princess?"

"Oh, it's been so long," Ichigo sighed. "I know it started with an A…"

"By chance was it Adina?" Yuugi asked.

"I believe so. Of course, it's been years since I've had to watch over all four of them…"

"Hey, it was Adina!" Jonouchi yelled. "He really was playing one of his guessing games… Who would have guessed?"

"It's getting late," Ichigo said. "Katsu-kun, why don't you and your two friends go and get Seto-chan so he can eat something with his medicine. I don't know if he has a different prescription now, but better safe than sorry."

"Medicine?" Yuugi asked. "Like for his migraine?"

"Migraine? Seems like poor Seto-chan gets everything. No, it's worst than a migraine."

"How bad are we talking?" Honda asked curiously.

"Let me explain," Ichigo said. "Seto-chan and Moku-chan's mother didn't die just because of giving birth to Moku-chan. She had a very weak body, getting sick all the time. There was a chance she would have died giving birth to Seto-chan, but she luckily survived. Unfortunately, Seto-chan has that same condition. I guess that's why he always tried to be as independent as he could. You see, he'll eventually have to become dependent on someone."

* * *

TBC

(1) Tanabata – This definition is from Wikipedia:

Tanabata is a Japanese star festival, derived from Obon traditions and the Chinese star festival, Qi Xi. The festival is usually held on July 7, and celebrates the meeting of Orihime (Vega) and Hikoboshi (Altair). The Milky Way, a river made from stars that crosses the sky, separates these lovers, and they are allowed to meet only once a year. This special day is the seventh day of the seventh lunar month of the lunisolar calendar.

(2) …humans hearing dog whistles – dog whistles are on a frequency that is too high for normal human hearing. But there are some humans that can hear it as well. Hurray for Physics!

(3) virtual game – referring to that RPG game with the virtual pods. I'm going off the stupid American version and saying Kaiba design the game and not the Big 5.

**Next time:** More on the mysterious past of the Kaiba brothers as their first day of searching comes to a close. How will Yuugi and friends react to all this new information about the ice king?

**Random talk:** Wow… That was the longest chapter I've ever typed up… (About five pages…) Some parts I need to point out. Yes, I had to have _both_ Kaiba and Jonouchi hear dog whistles. After I found out in my Physics class that there are humans that can hear them, I needed to put that it. Is there anyone else loving Ichigo besides me? She really is that old lady that all the kids call grandma… Last thing, don't kill me for this chapter! I'm just typing what my demented mind is coming up with!

Please review because they actully encurage me to continue this story. They prove that people are actully reading this story. So, do as I say and not what I do! See you next chapter!

Rubi-chan


	6. Harsh Reality

**Disclaimer: **I don't own it. Enough said

**Random Talk:** Oops... I'm really late for an update... I hope everyone had a great holiday! (Me, I'm busy playing my new Final Fantasy III!)

I really do have a good excuse for why I didn't updat sooner! One, I was in Las Vegas last week and was too cheep to pay to use the internet. (Got back on New Year's Eve.) Two, my allergy to alcholol chose a nice time to kick in... (They said it was a virgin drink! Liars!) I was sick for three days! I just got over it today!

To make up for it, I'm still going to post this Friday! Consider it a late Christmas present...

* * *

Chapter 6

Harsh Reality

"Let me explain," Ichigo said. "Seto-chan and Moku-chan's mother didn't die just because of giving birth to Moku-chan. She had a very weak body, getting sick all the time. There was a chance she would have died giving birth to Seto-chan, but she luckily survived. Unfortunately, Seto-chan has that same condition. I guess that's why he always tried to be as independent as he could. You see, he'll eventually have to become dependent on someone."

"Oh, kuso!" Jonouchi yelled. "I totally forgot about that! And Kaiba said he hasn't eaten in four days! This isn't good… He needs to eat food before taking his medicine!"

"We have to find him!" Yuugi said. "Let's go Honda-kun!"

"Right!"

* * *

Day was turning into night fast. Kaiba wandered around his old house looking for Mokuba. He knew already that his younger brother has been there recently for he found bags that held some of Mokuba's belongings. What surprised the young CEO was that after a thorough search of the house, he still couldn't find Mokuba. 

"Looks like Mokuba already left," Kaiba said to himself, heading for the stairs. "But why would he leave his stuff behind?"

Just as Kaiba reached the top of the staircase, he started to feel lightheaded. It seemed like the world was spinning, making Kaiba dizzy. Not only that, but his legs were not moving like he wanted them to. After a minute of suffering this, Kaiba fainted and toppled down the stairs.

"Kaiba-kun, are you in there?" Yuugi yelled from outside the old house.

"I don't think he's going to answer," Honda said. "No offence, Yuugi, but this is Kaiba we're talking about."

"Let's just go in," Jonouchi said. "I have this really bad feeling something is not right."

"I guess it's okay," Yuugi said as he opened the door. All three boys froze at the site of an unconscious Kaiba on the floor. "Oh, my god!"

"Yuugi, call an ambulance," Jonouchi yelled. "Honda, run back to Obaa-san's apartment and tell her about Kaiba. She would know more on what to do while we wait for the paramedics to get here."

"Okay, Jonouchi-kun!" Yuugi yelled as he reached for his cell-phone.

"Be right back," Honda said as he ran back the way they just came.

"Don't you dare die right now, Kaiba," Jonouchi muttered to the sleeping brunette. "Especially just after finding out who you really are. You don't know how worried I was when you left. Besides, Mokuba may not admit to this, but he still needs you."

* * *

Kaiba woke up the next day in a hospital room. Needless to say, the young CEO was unhappy about this. Not only did he oversleep, but he also missed the whole day of school. So, being as stubborn as he is, Kaiba tried to get out of the bed only to wind up falling onto the floor. 

"Damn…" Kaiba muttered. "I guess I really do need to eat for that stupid medicine to work…"

"Guess so," a voice said. Kaiba looked up and saw Jonouchi standing in front of him. "Need a hand?"

"I can get up myself," Kaiba muttered. "I don't need some stupid dog's help."

"Suit yourself," Jonouchi shrugged. He walked over to a chair and sat in it. "I'll be sitting right here if you need any help." And that's what he did. Jonouchi watched Kaiba try to stand up for about five minutes until Kaiba sighed.

"Fine," Kaiba muttered. "I need some help."

"What was that?" Jonouchi asked mockingly. "I couldn't hear that."

"I said I need help getting up, you stupid inu!" Kaiba yelled.

"Nope, don't feel like helping now."

"What! How dare you!"

"I have the choice of letting you stay on the ground until a nurse comes in and yells at you, or I could help you up so you might not get in trouble. I'm choosing the first option. Plus, I never promised that I would help. Hey! What are you doing now?" Jonouchi shot up from the seat as he watched Kaiba try to get up once more.

"What does it look like, makeinu? Since you won't help, I might as well do it myself."

"Baka," Jonouchi muttered. He just stood and watched the other teen attempted to stand up successfully. But every time Kaiba got up, few seconds late he would fall down. Eventually, a nurse came in.

"Sir!" she yelled. "You shouldn't be out of bed!"

"I'm fine!" Kaiba yelled back as he made another attempt to stand. The brunette didn't even have the strength to get up from the floor, so he remained on there, panting.

"You really should get some rest," the nurse said as she started to lift Kaiba up. She then turned to face Jonouchi. "You should have stopped him from leaving bed. Well, at least you can help me get him back in."

"Yes ma'am," Jonouchi said. He moved to one side of Kaiba and helped lift him up. It shocked the blond teen how light the other was. Kaiba felt like he was underweight, but nowhere near anorexic. As soon as the nurse left, Jonouchi had to ask the question. "How much do you weigh, Kaiba?"

"That's none of your business," Kaiba muttered.

"Fine by me. I'll just look on your chart." Jonouchi walked to the foot of the bed and started to flip through papers on the clipboard. "Damn! You need to eat more! Not only that, but you need to eat right! How the heck do you survive?"

"I'm not."

"Excuse me? What do you mean you're not?"

"I'm not surviving."

"But you said yesterday-"

"I never said I was surviving. I just said that a human can survive without food for at least 30 days. Besides, both you and I know I'm going to die soon. There is no known cure to this stupid disease, only a way to stall the inevitable. I think it's amazing that I've lasted this long."

"If you feel that way, why don't you just give up on life? Not that I'm saying you should kill yourself or anything!"

"I need to make sure Mokuba can live a life that is as normal as it can get for us."

"And being adopted by some rich dude will give you normal lives… I don't see the logic there."

"We needed someone with money to pay for both of our medication. It's true families only wanted me, but that was after realizing how expensive we were. Mokuba already had his medication for his ADHD by then, and I had all the different medication for my illness. Why take two kids that have needs that cost more than what you pay for just to get them?"

"I guess I can see why… That still doesn't explain why you are striving for a normal life for him."

"Looks like Obaa-san kept her word never to tell anyone. You know how and why my okaa-san died, right?" Jonouchi nodded. Kaiba sighed and continued. "Well, her death devastated my father. Things went downhill for him after that Tanabata all those years ago. I guess you can say he went a little insane."

* * *

TBC

**Next time:** More on the Kaiba brother's history. What is Mokuba up to now? 

**Random Talk:** Kaiba's disease has no name and doesn't exist to my knowledge. I was too lazy to look up a good disease or come up with a name for one… I know that I should, but I can't think of any!

Sorry guys for the short chapter! (Not even three whole pages!)

Rubi-chan


	7. Insanity

**Disclaimer:** Don't own, don't sue.

**Random talk:** ((comes out of corrner from crying)) You guys love this fic, but you won't review! I have over 1000 hits, but only 11 reviews! I'm really hurt! I want to know what I could do to improve! Now, I'm going to go back to crying now... I'll see you at the end of the chapter.

**Note on yamis and hikaris:** Yamis and hikaris will be mentioned or actually appear. Just to go over how _I_ will call them. This doesn't mean the characters will call them that.

Hikari: Yuugi, Ryou

Yami: Yami, Bakura

* * *

Chapter 7

Insanity

Kaiba sighed and continued. "Well, her death devastated my father. Things went downhill for him after that Tanabata all those years ago. I guess you can say he went a little insane."

"Insane?" Jonouchi questioned. "How bad are we talking about?"

"At first, he wasn't insane, just depressed. You remember how your father and mine would go out to drink every Sunday, right?"

"How can I forget? They started to drink together after Okaa-san left with Shizuka. But your father was drinking excessively even before that."

"Correct. After a few years of drinking, he started to act strange. He would talk to himself constantly, and he never cooked anymore. Mokuba and I would go over to Obaa-san's house just to eat. This went on for about a year."

"Then what happened?"

"He snapped. Mokuba was five and I was ten. We found the hard way."

"Care to explain how you found out the hard way?"

"One night, Mokuba couldn't sleep, so he joined me in my bed. Mokuba instantly fell asleep, but I couldn't. I could sense something was amiss. A few minutes later, our father opened my door. I pretended to be asleep so he wouldn't get mad at me. I heard him walk up to my bed slowly so he wouldn't step on anything. He started to talk to himself, but it seemed like his words were addressed to us. The last thing he said scared me. He said, 'Go back to hell, you devil child. You ruined this family for the last time.' I realized he was talking about Mokuba. My eyes snapped open, and I saw our father with a steak knife in his hands. He really was going to kill Mokuba."

"Wait… You mean your real father tried to kill the little guy?"

"Yes. Luckily, I stopped him before he succeeded. After I stopped him, he ran out of the house and never return."

"What happened to him?"

"Hm… You're full of questions…"

"Maybe you shouldn't leave any holes in your stories!"

"True… Well, he went for a drive and got in a car accident. Died instantly. I thought that Mokuba didn't know about what happened that day. Two years ago, I found out differently. Turns out Mokuba had his suspicions until Gozaburo told him the truth. Who knew Gozaburo did so much research on my family."

"He did research on you?"

"Seems like it. I guess he wanted as much blackmail as he could on me."

"Wow… Just one more question, how did you stop your father from killing Mokuba?"

"I'll give that answer some other time. For some odd reason, I'm exhausted."

"Then sleep, you baka."

"I don't have much of a choice, eh inu?"

"Just shut up and sleep." And Kaiba did just that.

* * *

"You're a fast learner, Rou," Hirutain said with a smirk. "Who knew such a scrawny, little brat could actually be a decent fighter?" 

"I'm not scrawny or little," Mokuba muttered. His outfit was basically some old clothes one of the gang members had from when they were his age. He had a plain white shirt and an aqua-green hoodie jacket with the sleeves torn off. His blue jeans were also torn off at the knees. He even had his right ear pierced, twice. "I told you I'm a fast learner."

"So you did. But I didn't expect you to learn this fast. It's only been one day, and you already know the proper way of handling a knife and a gun. Not only that, but you can keep up with one of my best fighters in a fist fight."

"My so called brother thought it would be wise if I learn some self-defense. After being kidnapped so many times, he didn't want to take any chances. I always saw it as a waste of time, since I was surrounded by bodyguards almost 24-7."

"I don't care how you learned. All that matters is if you know how to."

"Of course. It's amazing how there hasn't been any search party for me yet…"

"Maybe your brother is happy that you're gone."

"I highly doubt it. I'm all he's got. Besides, he doesn't realize he owes me. If it wasn't for me, Gozaburo might still be alive."

"Interesting. Care to elaborate?"

"Back when Gozaburo was still CEO of Kaiba Corp, Kaiba tried to take the company for himself. Of course, he let me in on his plan for I had 2 of the shares and I was his brother. I knew it wasn't even a challenge for Kaiba, so I made things interesting. I told Gozaburo about Kaiba's plans of the take-over. I also made a bet with him. I said that if Kaiba didn't succeed, he could send us back to the orphanage."

"What if he did succeed?"

"Gozaburo would have to die. I guess that got the old man's attention. You see, that's when the real life chess game started. Eventually, Kaiba owned 49 of the company. Gozaburo got cocky and said that Kaiba lost. His fatal mistake was forgetting that I had 2, which I gave to Kaiba right in front of Gozaburo to make sure he knew he lost. After that, Gozaburo jumped to his death. He probably knew if he didn't kill himself, I would have. I still need to give the old man some credit though. He made it sound like he did it out of he's own free will. But the most amazing part is that no one realized that I was the one who was controlling the game. I think no one know up until now. Consider yourself lucky. You were the first one I ever told the true story to."

"I'm honored. Now, why don't we get some food? You look a little hungry."

"As long as I'm not paying."

"Who said anything about paying?"

* * *

That night, Yuugi, Honda, Anzu, and Ryou walked into Kaiba's hospital room. Jonouchi sat right next to the sleeping CEO. 

"Found anything about Mokuba?" Jonouchi asked.

"Sorry," Honda said. "Looks like Mokuba doesn't want to be found. We really should tell the cops about him running away."

"I don't think Kaiba-kun wants the public to know about this," Yuugi said.

"What are you talking about?" Anzu asked.

"Think about it," Yuugi started to explain. "He asked us for help after he found out that Mokuba wasn't taking his medicine. If the police were involved, then the media would find out soon enough. That means people will find out about Mokuba-kun's, and eventually Kaiba-kun's, condition."

"But the media found out about Kaiba's condition," Ryou mused.

"His fault, not ours. The baka over here wouldn't eat when he took his medicine. How many years has he been taking it now? Let's see… He started it when he was about five…"

"That's eleven years!" Honda yelled.

"And he still can't remember that he needs food for it to work properly… He may be a child prodigy, but he can't even get the simplest common sense in his head."

"You really care about him," Anzu said. "I know he was your friend and all, but this is a real sudden change of heart."

"For one thing, yes, I do care about him," Jonouchi said with an air of melancholy. He had a sad smile plastered on his face. "Second, he's still my friend. I have no clue as to why he treated us like that, but he must have his reasons."

"Why do you say that?" Honda asked. "I mean, not too long ago, you couldn't imagine Kaiba being nice."

"That was before I found out he was Ryujima. He was the kindest kid anyone could meet. If you compared him back then to Yuugi, Yuugi would be a Boy Scout while Ryujima was a saint. He never got mad at anyone, except when his okaa-san died, but that was one time. He wanted to make everyone happy, even if it would make him unhappy in the process."

"Who said I changed?" Kaiba muttered.

"Kaiba!" Jonouchi yelled in surprised. "I thought you were still asleep!"

"Don't call me that."

"What? I didn't call you anything!"

"Don't call me Kaiba… I only took that name so Mokuba and I could be adopted and have an easy life. I knew none of the other families could afford my medicine along with Mokuba's. If they could, then they didn't want Mokuba. Gozaburo was the only one that would adopt us, with the right incentive."

"Then what do you want me to call you!"

"I don't care. Ryujima, Seto, anything but Kaiba. Of course, at school you will still have to call me that."

"Fine. Seto it is."

* * *

"An update on a story previously reported. Yesterday, we reported teenage CEO Kaiba Seto was hospitalized for unknown reasons. Today, we found out that it was due to an illness." 

"Turn it off," Mokuba said. The gang turned to face their newest member. His back was facing them, but they knew better not to disturb him. Just this morning, the kid managed to wound one of their best fighters besides Hirutain. To add salt on an old wound, he made it seem like child's play.

"Don't you want to know what's going on with your brother?" one of the guys asked.

"For one thing, he's not my brother anymore. For another, I know what's wrong with him. He's dying." Mokuba turned to face the others. The little preteen had the scariest grin on his face. One that could rival Bakura and Marik combined. "His illness finally caught up with him. Interesting that our mother had the same illness, yet I was the one who killed her… What would be more interesting is that if I really could be the one to kill him."

* * *

It's been five days since Kaiba arrived at the hospital, and the young CEO was not happy. Evidently, his PR manager thought it was a good idea to tell why he was in the hospital without his consent. That means, everyone knew about his illness. His stocks dropped slightly, but it was going back up. He was resorted to working in the sterile hospital room, and all of his meetings for the next two weeks were canceled. Not only that, but Mokuba was still missing. Thankfully, the media has yet to find out about that. The excuse used was that Mokuba was sick with the flu. 

"He's late," Kaiba muttered. All of his homework and paperwork was finished. There was nothing the ill teen could do but wait for Jonouchi. After every day of school, the blond teen and his friends would come by and keep him company. He was secretly happy that the other would come by and visit even after how he treated the blond. He didn't even mind Jonouchi's friends now, something he would never admit to it.

"Sorry we're late!" Jonouchi yelled.

"Yeah. Jonouchi had to get the right bouquet for you," Honda blurted.

"Honda!" Jonouchi yelled even louder, his face turning a nice shade of pink.

"Why are you embarrassed?" Anzu asked sarcastically. "It was your idea to get him a get well present…"

"I'm touched, koinu," Kaiba said.

"Really?" Jonouchi asked, his face got a shade darker. "Well, here." The blond duelist handed the bed-ridden teen a dozen white roses. "If my memory serves me correct, you liked these, right?"

"And your memory is correct," Kaiba said softly. Jonouchi thought he could see the faintest blush on the CEO's cheeks. Of course, it could just be his fever.

"I would never suspected Kaiba be a fan of roses," Honda said. "Hope you don't mind me asking, but why white roses?"

"Okaa-san had the most beautiful garden one could ever imagine. Her pride and joy among the plants was her white roses. I remember her the most by those flowers. Just seeing them reminds me of her."

"I remember that garden. After she died, you started to care for it."

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything," the doctor said.

"You were not, Dr. Hitomi," Kaiba said. "So, any word of when I can leave?"

"Actually, that's the reason why I'm here," Dr. Hitomi said with a smile. "You can leave tomorrow. We just want to keep you here for one more day, just in case."

"Finally," Kaiba muttered. "I never did like hospitals."

Little do they know that a certain raven-haired kid was listening from outside of the room. Mokuba smirked at the new information.

"Oh, Kaiba, you don't have to worry about going to hospitals anymore," Mokuba said to himself. "Soon, you're going to join the rest of my victims. Along with Yuugi-tachi." With that, he left the hospital, laughing his evil laughter.

* * *

TBC

**Next time: **Mokuba makes his move. How will Kaiba and Yuugi-tachi react to where Mokuba has been?

**Random talk:** Heh… I really had to do this… Gives a good reason as to where part of Mokuba's insanity came from… Sorry for speeding things up. Just a quick question… Is it just me, or did I make Mokuba a little too much like Wrath from FullMetal Alchemist? Please tell me it's just me… It's bad enough that I think the two look alike… (Am I the only one who thinks this? Tell me I'm not!)

Sorry for not keeping my word on posting on Friday. Two things affect my posting. One is school, the second is if my Otou-san is using my computer. He's been using it so much just to play Spider Solitare! I've been telling him to hook up his! Wah!

Also, I'm sorry I can't reply to those who aren't signed up to this site. Some time ago, they said we couldn't reply to reviews in fanfics. Now, I really don't want to chance this story being deleted just because of that... I really am glad for every review I get!

Rubi-chan


	8. Trap Set and Sprung

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh or any of the characters. I also don't own McDonalds, which is sad because I have a little experiment I want to do with them.

**Random talk:** Here's the climax people! Meaning, the story is almost done guys. Just a few more chapters.

* * *

Chapter 8

Trap Set and Sprung

Kaiba stretched has he waited for Dr. Hitomi to return saying he was free to go. He felt weak, but that was to be expected. His illness was getting worse. Plus, he was in bed for almost a week.

"So, Seto-chan is leaving today," a voice said from behind the young CEO. Kaiba turned around to see Jonouchi.

"Since when have you started to call me that after all these years?" Kaiba said, smirking.

"Since I found out you, Kaiba Seto, was my Ryujima Seto."

"'My'? Now I belong to you?"

"Just shut up. The doctor said you can leave."

"All right, koinu," Kaiba said, smirking when he noticed the slight blush on the teen.

* * *

"Where's Jonouchi?" Mrs. Mizuki, their English teacher, asked Yuugi. 

"Oh, he's with Kaiba-kun," Yuugi said. The busy room went silent. Almost every pair of eyes was on the midget teen. "Umm… Kaiba-kun is being released today and I thought one of us should stay with him, just in case."

"How sweet," Mrs. Mizuki said. "But why Jonouchi? We all know those two don't get along."

"I told him we shouldn't have played janken (1)," Honda said. "But does he listen?"

"Ah, now it makes sense… I hope those two can survive one another…"

"Something tells me they'll be just fine, Mizuki-sensei," Yuugi said.

* * *

"Well," Jonouchi said as the two teens left the hospital, "since I skipped school just for you– " 

"Wow, after finding out who I really was sure did change how you treat me," Kaiba interrupted the blond. "Before, you wouldn't even give me the time or date, literally."

Jonouchi's face turned a light shade of pink at that remark. "As I was saying, since I skipped school just for you, how about we do something fun? First, let's get some real food into you. Burger World should be pretty much empty this time of day. Then, we could go to the arcade! I want to see you play Dance Dance Revolution! Now don't say you don't play that game because I saw your signature KAI as the high score. I mean, you even beat Anzu's high score, and that was _high_!"

"I didn't even know people actually pay attention to those, let alone know my signature KAI… Hey, was there still a NOAH on there. I think it should be under Doubles DX…"

"Yeah, it's ranked number three. Why?"

"I need to tell Noa to stop hacking into the machines." This made Jonouchi laugh.

"He hacks into– " Jonouchi started to say when Kaiba's cell phone started to ring.

"Sorry, Jonouchi," Kaiba said as he took out his phone. When he saw the caller ID, he froze.

"Something wrong, Seto-chan?"

"Where have you been, Mokuba?" Kaiba yelled when he answered the phone.

_"Nii-sama! Help me!"_

"Mokuba! What's wrong?"

_"Some gang is holding me captive! I just managed to get my cell phone back! I'm in some kind of warehouse! Right now, I'm hiding from them."_

"Okay. Don't panic. Can you tell me anything else? Like a street, building, a person's name."

_"Their outfit looks like the one for Rintama High School. I think the leader is some guy name Hirutani. I never saw his face, but I heard him say something about ransom money…"_

"Great! I'll find you as soon as I can."

_"Hurry!"_

_"Hey! The little gaki is in here!" _Kaiba heard someone yell._ "Give me that phone!"_ Then, the line went dead.

"What happened?" Jonouchi asked, panicked.

"Mokuba's up to something…" Kaiba murmured. "He's acting as he normally does with his meds… Tell me, do you recognize the name Hirutani?"

"Hirutani? Don't tell me Mokuba is mixed up with him…"

"I'm guessing that's a yes…"

"Well, yeah… I was in his gang in middle school. He's the persistent type. If you were ever in his gang, he still sees you in it. Quitting means death."

"Kuso… We better get Mokuba. But, first, we need a plan."

"How about the old diversion tactic? I'll go in first and keep Hirutani busy while you get Mokuba?"

"I know Mokuba better than you do, and I know he's the one planing this trap. It won't work."

"So, it's a trap now?"

"Remember what Noa said about Mokuba being like this so called dark half of Ryou?"

"Oh, yeah… So, why won't it work?"

"Because Mokuba would be expecting the diversion… It's just way too obvious."

"That's the point! It's too obvious to Mokuba to even think you would use it! You don't give yourself enough credit… The only reason Mokuba can come up with those invent-"

"Quite!" Kaiba whispered as he covered Jonouchi's mouth. "We're talking like this just out in the open… Look, my limo is here now. Let's go to this Burger World of yours and then we can talk all we want. Sound good?"

"Fine," Jonouchi said after Kaiba removed his hand.

* * *

"Just eat the stupid burger! This place has great food!" Jonouchi yelled at Kaiba because said brunette was staring at his food. 

"Can one even call this food?" Kaiba questioned. "After eating at an American McDonalds, I haven't been to any place that is considered a fast food restaurant."

"That's America, and this is Japan! There's a big difference!"

"Like you would know… But that's enough about fast food and let's return to the subject at hand. What do you mean I don't give myself enough credit?"

"Hmm? Oh, that. Well, sure Mokuba does invent all the hardware, but who makes the software?"

"I do."

"That's what I mean! There aren't that many kids our age making video games from scrap! Plus, you know how Mokuba sees and thinks about things. Just with that understanding, you're pretty smart."

"You do have a point."

"Alright! Now, what are we going to do?"

"I have a plan, but we need your friend's help."

"What about us?" a voice asked from behind the two teens.

"Geez, Honda!" Jonouchi yelled as he jumped. Jonouchi and Kaiba looked behind them to see the rest of Yuugi-tachi. "Are you trying to give me a heart attack! What are you guys doing out of school so soon any ways?"

"Well, we had a little problem with my yami," Ryou said.

"Burned down the gym to the ground!" Honda yelled.

"At least the pharaoh managed to stop him in time," Yuugi said. "They had to close the school though. We figured that you two would be here. So, what's going on?"

"Mokuba called Seto-chan as soon as we left the hospital," Jonouchi said.

"Wait," Anzu said, "did Jonouchi call Kaiba Seto-chan and lived? The last girl who did that had to transfer schools."

"Hey, he said I could! Well, back to the problem. Mokuba said a gang was holding him captive. But not just any gang, we're talking about Rintama guys."

"Meaning Hirutani, right?" Honda said with anger.

"Correct," Kaiba said. "So, we think it's a trap. It's just something Mokuba would plan. What he has plan, we don't know. That is where we need your help."

"Whatever we can do to help," Yuugi said, smiling.

"You and Bakura can't help, but your so called "yamis" can. Here's what we are going to do…"

* * *

"Hey, Seto-chan," Jonouchi said. "I want to tell you something." 

Jonouchi and Kaiba were in front of the warehouse. Everyone knew their role in the plan. They even knew what to do if that plan failed. And, of course, since it was Kaiba who came up with the plans, they had a back-up plan to the back up plan.

"What is it?" Kaiba asked.

"Never mind. I'll tell you when we're out of here.

Kaiba shrugged and they walked into the lion's den. Mokuba was chained to a crane, unconscious, in the center of the building surrounded by six teens. One of them stepped forward.

"Jonouchi, it's so good to see you again," Hirutani said.

"The feeling isn't mutual," Jonouchi muttered. "Just let Mokuba go and no one won't get hurt."

"Fine, we'll let him go. But we want something in return. Jonouchi has to join us once more."

"No money?" Kaiba asked. "Strange. Mokuba said something about ransom money."

"He must have misheard. I was never interested in money."

"No, Mokuba never hears wrong. I think he had this all planed out. Am I close, Mokuba?"

"I guess I don't give you enough credit," Mokuba whispers. He unchains himself from the crane. Then, he takes out a gun and aims for Jonouchi. "No offence, Jou, I'm just fulfilling my end of the barging." A shot echoed through the abandon warehouse.

"Jonouchi!" numerous people yelled out, giving away their positions. But it wasn't Jonouchi who fell. Jonouchi stared at the one who just saved his life. Blue eyes closed in pain as he fell.

"Seto!"

* * *

TBC

(1) Janken - Japanese way of doing rock, paper, scissors. Instead of saying that, they say "Jan Ken Pon!"

**Next time:** The truth is revealed about many things. Someone betrays while another is dying.

**Random talk:** Okay, my crazy, demented mind really went overboard this time. It's kinda rare to find someone who is still in high school and can make games from basically scrap. (I know someone like that. Really smart with computers, that kid…) Oh, and the NOAH thing with DDR is a joke with my friends. (There really is NOAH on the high scores list on a DDR machine! We freaked out when we first saw it!) I hope everyone is enjoying this story! Don't worry, the yamis will have a role soon. I didn't forget about them.

I want to answer an intresting question I never thought about. Someone pointed out that while Seto-chan's father was going insane, so was Moku-chan. Then, they asked if these two incidents were related. In a way, yes. Moku-chan didn't start to go insane until after their father's death. But, it was because of their father trying to kill Moku-chan that caused him to go insane when he found out about it. Hope that explained things!

Until next time!

Rubi-chan


	9. For Every Evil

**Disclaimer: **I don't think I'm Japanese, so there is no way I could own Yu-Gi-Oh. But I do have an aunt who does live in Japan!

**Random talk:** I found the rhyme Mokuba says in a book of Mother Goose rhymes. When I read it, I thought it would be cool if Mokuba said it. It really is called "For Every Evil". Well, enjoy this chapter!

* * *

Chapter 9

For Every Evil

"I think he had this all planed out. Am I close, Mokuba?" Kaiba asked.

"I guess I don't give you enough credit," Mokuba whispered. He unchained himself from the crane. Then, he took out a gun and aimed for Jonouchi. "No offence, Jou, I'm just fulfilling my end of the barging." A shot echoed through the abandon warehouse.

"Jonouchi!" numerous people yelled out, giving away their positions. But it wasn't Jonouchi who fell. Jonouchi stared at the one who just saved his life. Blue eyes closed in pain as he fell.

"Seto!"

Jonouchi managed to catch Kaiba before he hit the ground. The wound was on the right shoulder, and was probably still in him. Jonouchi applied pressure to the wound so it wouldn't bleed that much. Hirutani ordered his gang to look for their "guests" in order to properly greet them.

"Figures," Mokuba muttered. "I knew Kaiba would take the bullet for you. He may seem heartless, but he's too much like Yuugi."

"This is your brother we're talking about!" Jonouchi yelled. "Why would you do this to him?"

"My brother is dead!" Mokuba yelled. "Besides, my name isn't Mokuba any more, it's Rou!"

"Mokuba…" Kaiba said weakly.

"Hey, _nii-sama_," Mokuba said sarcastically. "You remember that old rhyme father used to tell us. You have to remember "For Every Evil", right?"

"Huh? What's that?" Jonouchi asked.

"For every evil under the sun," Mokuba recited, "there is a solution or there is none. If there be one, try and find it. If there be none, never mind it."

"What does a stupid nursery rhyme have to do with anything!" Jonouchi yelled. "Seto-chan is dying and all you can do is recite some stupid poem you tell to little kids?"

"Didn't you listen to what I said? Our father used to tell that to us. When I was ten, I finally figured out why he told us it. The rhyme was addressed to me. He was saying I was the evil and that there was a solution or none at all. I guess he never found it because look at me now."

"You're… right Mokuba," Kaiba whispered hoarsely. "But you're wrong… on one thing… He did find… a solution…"

"One, I'm Rou, not Mokuba! Two, if he found a solution, why am I like this now?"

"Two reasons… The first… is because our father… He never gave… you a decent place… to grow up in… Also because… of his stupid… actions…"

"Seto-chan, don't talk." Jonouchi said to the dying brunette.

"I'll be fine…" Kaiba whispered, giving Jonouchi a true smile. It made Jonouchi want to cry. It was the first true smile he he last saw the brunette as a child.

"Hey, boss!" one of the gang members yelled. "We found two intruders. Both of them look like Jonouchi's new friends."

"Anzu, Honda!" Jonouchi yelled when he saw two of his friends being dragged out of their hiding spots.

"Don't worry, Jonouchi!" Anzu yelled. "I called the paramedics! They should be here any minute now!"

"Shut up!" Mokuba yelled. "I want to hear what Kaiba has to say. He only gave one reason. What's the second?"

"He did try… his solution and failed… Remember that night… before he died…? It's true he tried… to kill you that night… But you don't… know how you… survived…" Kaiba took Jonouchi's hand way from his wound and tore open his shirt at the bullet hole. Besides the nice little place the bullet found a home at, there was a rather large scar. The bullet wound looked like it was dead center of the scar.

"Is that a stab wound?" Jonouchi asked with fear.

"Yes… I used myself… as a shield to save Mokuba… The wound never… healed properly… Hence the scar... But that doesn't matter… What does is… that you're safe and alive… No matter what you do… you are still my little brother… The brother I will… always… love…" Kaiba fell unconscious after saying that.

"Seto-chan?" Jonouchi said. His voice was barely there, and only he could hear it. Tears started to fall his face like little waterfalls. "Seto-chan! You can't die now! Not after I found out who you were! I always waited for you to come back! You promised you would and you kept your promise! I didn't! I didn't recognize you after all these years! Please don't leave me!"

Mokuba stood still, looking like he went into shock. He probably did, too. The young, ebony haired kid didn't know what to think. After all he has done to his brother, the elder still said he would always love him.

"What are you waiting for?" Hirutani yelled. "Finish them off!"

"You, shut up!" Mokuba yelled. He turned around and aimed the gun at Hirutani. "I never take orders from weaklings! You have to rely on an elementary kid to do your dirty work! What kind of gang leader are you? I quit your gang!"

"Quit? You can't quit! If you leave, it means death!"

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Bakura said as he stepped out of the shadows. "Unless you want a one way trip to the Shadow Realm."

"For once," Yami said, appearing in the same manner as Bakura, "I actually agree with the tomb robber. I will not allow you to harm my friends."

"Ah! It's that kid from the last time we messed with Jonouchi!" one of the thugs yelled. The whole gang ran away, leave Hirutani to fend for himself.

"Grrr… Where do you think you're going!" Hirutani bellowed. "Fine! We'll settle this another time!" With that said, he ran off in a different direction as his gang. Mokuba sighed in relieve, as if it was all a bad dream that was finally over. It probably was to him.

"Nii-sama!" Mokuba yelled, running over to his fallen brother, crying. "Nii-sama, please wake up! I'm really sorry! I couldn't find my medicine that day, so that's why I blew up! I didn't mean anything I said!"

"It's okay, kid," Jonouchi whispered, giving Mokuba a hug, crying as well. "We knew that Kaiba was going to be injured. He'll be fine, trust me. Look, the paramedics are here already."

The teens watched as the paramedics looked at Kaiba. Surprisingly enough, it was the same team that took Kaiba down to the hospital the first time. Because of that, they let both Mokuba and Jonouchi ride in the back. Mokuba called a limo for the others to meet them at the hospital.

* * *

"How is he?" Yuugi asked as soon as they saw Mokuba and Jonouchi. 

"He's in operation right now," Mokuba said solemnly.

"The doctor said it was a good thing that they got him here when they did," Jonouchi said. "Any later and he would have been a goner."

"What I want to know is what was the plan Jonouchi was talking about," Mokuba said

"Kaiba-kun came up with an idea to get you back to your senses," Yuugi whispered. "He knew you were going to harm Jonouchi because that was his other weak point besides yourself. He would save Jonouchi and try to snap you out of your rage."

"What I don't get is how am I a weak point," Jonouchi said. "There's Kaiba Corp, his past… Why me?"

"You were his first true friend," Mokuba said. "You remember how he was before I was born. Never really fitted in with other kids. You made him feel like he belongedThere might be more to it, but that's all he's told me. You don't know how bad it hurt him pushing you away."

"Then why didn't he just come out and tell me who he was! He never did explain that!"

"He didn't want you to remember him as the weak Ryujima, or remember Ryujima as a CEO. You would expect Seto to act like he used to when we were little. It would have put a lot of stress on him. He already has enough stress that it could kill an elephant!"

"I guess you do have a point…"

Dr. Hitomi walked up and smiled. "Ah, Jonouchi, good to see you again! And I'm guessing this is Mokuba, right?"

Mokuba nodded. "Are you here to tell us about my brother? How is he? When can we see him?"

"One question at a time, little one!" Dr. Hitomi laughed. "Your brother is fine. We managed to get the bullet out, along with any pieces of cloth. But there might be a problem. His body might have become weak during the surgery, or even before that. Due to his illness, he might not be independent again."

"What are you saying?" Anzu said.

"I'm saying there is a possibility he will not walk again, let alone get out of bed. He will need someone to help him function, and he will have to use a wheelchair. Of course, this is only a possibility."

"What are the chances that he'll be back to normal?" Yuugi asked.

"Normal as in being able to walk and all? He has about 15 percent chance that will happen."

* * *

Mokuba and Jonouchi stayed at the hospital that night. After Dr. Hitomi left, Mokuba cried, blaming himself for every misfortune that has ever happen. Jonouchi managed to calm the child down and get him to sleep. It didn't help that they couldn't see Kaiba until the next day. But that might have been a good thing. If Mokuba saw the state Kaiba was in, the nurses might have needed to sedate him. 

Yuugi, Anzu, Honda, and Ryou went home. Yuugi said he would tell the teachers that Jonouchi was watching over Kaiba. If they didn't believe it, Anzu had the right to call Isono so he can confirm it.

The whole world must have heard by now that _the _Kaiba Seto was shot and was now in critical condition. It was on every channel that ever shows the news. What they didn't know was who shot him. This was good for Mokuba.

Since Kaiba's condition was broadcasted on almost every channel, Ichigo found out. As soon as she heard it, she rushed down to the hospital as fast as she could. She was now sitting next to Jonouchi. Mokuba was sleeping soundly on her lap, still crying a bit.

And so the world waited to see what would come of the infamous Kaiba Seto.

* * *

TBC

**Next time:** Kaiba wakes up and faces reality. It's the conclusion of "Forgotten Childhood"!

**Random talk:** Did you guys think I forgot Ichigo? Most of you probably didn't even miss her… Heh… This fic is a little fast pace, but I really don't like to draw things out. Plus, how I had Mokuba acting didn't give much room to do that. Okay, maybe it did… Seems like I have a little problem… Oh well! See ya next time!

Rubi-chan


	10. Will to Live

**Disclaimer:** I don't own it, plain and simple.

**Random note:** Woot! Last chapter people! Over a year in the works, and this is what it leads up to! I'm sadly disappointed in all you people that don't review... But, here's your chance to redeem yourselves! So, enjoy!

PS. I have an announcement at the end of the chapter.

* * *

Chapter 10

Will to Live

Kaiba woke up in a white room, meaning he was in a hospital, again. He could feel someone holding his hand, tightly. There were voices outside the room, one male and the other female. Their voices were too low for Kaiba to hear, but he recognized the female as Ichigo. Once the voices stopped, Ichigo walked in.

"Oh, Seto-chan, you're finally awake," Ichigo said. "Katsu-kun was awake almost all the time. Moku-chan has been trying to stay awake as long as he can, but I make him sleep. You've been asleep for two weeks now. How are you feeling? And I want an honest answer."

"Like shit, Obaa-san," Kaiba said a little hoarse. "Sorry for the language, but you asked for a honest answer. I'm guessing the plan worked if Mokuba is here."

"You tactless plan did work, and now you suffer the consequences. Your condition has gotten worse. Dr. Hitomi even thinks you might need assistance."

"At least Mokuba is safe. I already know I don't have long to live, so why worry about what would happen to me."

"Well, how would you like to live to an old age? I was just talking to Dr. Hitomi, and he said they just came up with a treatment that might help people with your condition. They just need some test subjects. So, he asked me to ask you if you are willing to try it. How about it?"

"Do you even have to ask, Obaa-san? I'll do it."

Ichigo laughed. "I thought so. That's why I told him to sign you up already."

"How's Mokuba? Has he been taking his medicine?"

"We made sure he has been. And he agreed to go to a psychologist again. But something tells me he's just fine now, only need someone to talk to."

"Why do you think I'm here for?" Noa's voice echoed in the room. Kaiba raised an eyebrow in confusion. There was no sign of the green haired teen.

"Okay, where's the laptop?" Kaiba asked.

"Oh! Sorry about that Noa-kun!" Ichigo said, moving to the side. There, right behind where Ichigo was standing, was a laptop with Noa's face on the screen.

"It's okay, Kudamono-san," Noa said, smiling. "You should have seen Jonouchi while you were sleeping. You two must have been really good friends for him to talk to someone in a coma like he did. He kept forgetting that he wasn't the only one in the room. Most of the time, he ignored everyone and everything. Some days, only eating one meal a day. Sounds like someone we all know."

"Shut up, Noa," Kaiba muttered, glaring said boy. "You're lucky I let you help run the security for Kaiba Corp's main frame."

"But I talk to Mokuba, which helps lessen his tension."

"Whatever. I'm just tired right now."

"Then sleep, Seto-chan. I'll tell Moku-chan and Katsu-kun that you woke up. They may get mad at us for not waking them up, but they'll understand."

"Thanks, obaa-san," Kaiba weakly said right before he fell asleep.

"Did you just call him Seto-chan without getting yelled at?" Noa asked skeptically.

"Should I have been?"

* * *

"The fan girls are sure persistent this time," Ryou stated as the rest of Yuugi-tachi managed to get past the large swarm of fans (both male and female) of the Kaiba brothers and reporters. Poor Yuugi was still lost in the sea of bodies due to a reporter recognized the little guy and decided to ask him a few questions. Eventually, there were several reporters surrounding the small teen. 

"I feel sorry for leaving Yuugi to those sharks," Anzu said sadly. "Hey, where's Honda?"

"Right here!" Honda appeared from the mob on Anzu left. Right behind him was Yuugi.

"Thank you, Honda-kun," Yuugi said. "It's a good thing the police recognized us from the last time. They really helped Honda get the reporters away from me."

The four teens walked into the always hectic emergency room lobby, making a lot of fan girls upset. Ichigo was talking to one of the doctors, her back facing them. The doctor soon left, and Ichigo turned around. She smiled when she saw Yuugi-tachi and walked up to them.

"Hello, Yuugi-chan, Hiro-kun," Ichigo said to the two boys she met.

"Hello, Obaa-san," Yuugi said. "Oh, this is Mazaki Anzu and Bakura Ryou."

"Nice to meet you both. I'm Kudamono Ichigo, but everyone calls me Obaa-san."

"Nice to meet you, too," Ryou said, bowing.

"Likewise," Anzu said, bowing as well.

"So, how's Kaiba?" Honda asked.

"He woke up this morning while Katsu-kun and Moku-chan where asleep, but went back to sleep after a few minutes. You can figure out how upset those two were when they woke up. But, there is a problem. His condition has gotten worse; the doctor said his body won't be able to support his weight. He won't be able to walk."

"Kaiba-kun…" Yuugi murmured. "Does he know about this? Does Mokuba-kun and Jonouchi-kun know?"

"I found out only a few minutes ago. I didn't get the chance to tell them."

"Some thing tells Kaiba already knows," Honda said sadly.

"Obaa-san! Obaa-san!" Mokuba yelled, running up to the group. "Nii-sama is awake! Oh, hey guys."

"I guess you guys made great timing," Ichigo said. "Moku-chan, why don't you take your friends to see him. I'll go get Dr. Hitomi."

"Great idea. Come on, I'll take you to nii-sama. I'm sure he'll be… um… happy to see you. Let's walk there. Jonouchi said he wanted to talk to nii-sama for awhile."

"Right…" Honda muttered.

Mokuba led Yuugi-tachi to Kaiba's room. They talked about random things. Things like school, duel monsters, kid stuff. When they got to the door, an unfamiliar laugh was coming from the room. It sounded like Kaiba laughing, but not in an evil way. It sounded happy.

"Hey, remember the time Mokuba had that dog whistle?" Jonouchi asked.

"How can I forget that?" Kaiba managed to say through his laughing. "Mokuba thought we were dogs for over a month!"

"You thought those two were dogs?" Anzu asked, trying not to laugh. Ryou and Yuugi also were trying not to laugh, unlike Honda who didn't even try.

"Hey! I was four!" Mokuba yelled, blushing. "Obaa-san said only dogs could hear that whistle!"

"I'm surprised that koinu here actually didn't tell you that," Kaiba said, giving an actual smile.

"Did Kaiba just smile?" Honda asked in shock. "And Jonouchi didn't even get mad about being called a dog. Something's wrong here. Are you sure we're in the right room Mokuba?"

"What? I'm not allowed to smile once in awhile?" Kaiba joked.

"Besides, he used to call me koinu when we were kids," Jonouchi added. "It was a joke because of the dog whistle incident. Also, it didn't help that Kasutera's name was based off mine."

"Wait, didn't Kaiba-kun named Kasutera?" Yuugi asked.

"Yup!" Mokuba said. "Just as Jonouchi named Sato after Nii-sama!"

"How cute!" Anzu screeched.

"Will you shut up, you stupid mortal!" Ryou yelled.

"Not again…" Honda muttered.

"Oh, sorry," Ryou said "but I kinda let my yami take over for a while. I didn't get much sleep last night because of that essay."

"Ah, that explains a lot," Jonouchi said.

"So you are awake," Dr. Hitomi said. "That's good. But there is a problem."

"Let me guess, my body is too weak and I'm dying faster than I was the last time I was here."

"Seto!" Mokuba yelled. "This isn't a joking matter!"

"Mokuba, I think he wasn't joking," Jonouchi said.

"Well, Kaiba-san guessed right. But I have great news!"

"You found a cure?" Jonouchi asked, hope rang in his voice.

"Not quite," Ichigo said as she walked in. "You see, my daughter works here to make a cure for the disease. They just finished developing it, but it needs to be tested out. It's hard to find those who have it because they normally don't want people to know. So, how about it?"

"I don't know what to say, Obaa-san," Kaiba said, gaping. "Of course I'll do it!"

"Are you sure, Kaiba?" Honda said. "Who knows what else could happen with it."

"I'm not about to leave Mokuba behind," Kaiba said. "Besides, I trust Kazeko completely."

"Great! I'll tell her right away!" Dr. Hitomi said.

"I'll go with you. I haven't seen my daughter ever since she took this project. Seto-chan, you should go back to sleep. You're shoulder is still healing, and you must be exhausted."

"I'm fine," Kaiba said. "Jonouchi, why don't you take Mokuba down to the cafeteria to get some food. In fact, why don't the rest of you go with them."

"Are you sure, Nii-sama?" Mokuba asked in concern. "Will you be okay by yourself?"

"Yes, Mokuba, I'll be fine. I have to get some work done. Besides, I have our annoying little stepbrother to keep me entertained."

"Hey! I'm ten minutes older than you!" Noa yelled from the computer on the end table.

"Wait… Both Kaiba _and_ Noa share the same birthday?" Honda asked.

"Yup," Mokuba said. We were just as shocked to find that out as you guys are. Seto and Noa could have been identical twins with only the hair color different. Same size, weight, everything. Oh, and Noa didn't have an illness."

"Ah… Um, why don't we go get something to eat," Honda said.

The left the two blue eyed teens to work. Yuugi caught Jonouchi up with what he missed at school since he has been staying at Kaiba's side constantly. Thankfully, Mokuba managed to pull some strings so he could stay there. It also helped that Mokuba was helping Jonouchi with his homework.

"You don't think that those were the only reason why Kaiba is willing to test out this drug?" Honda asked.

"Of course not," Mokuba said, Jonouchi nodding in agreement.

"I think he finally wants to really live," Jonouchi said.

* * *

Owari

**Random talk:** Woot! Finally finished! I really had to push myself to finish this story. Let's just hope it won't take forever for the sequel. Yes, you heard correct! There is a **_sequel _**for this story! Actually, there are _two_ sequels! I decided to make a trilogy for this story! Kami-sama, what did I just put myself into? Oh well… So, keep an eye for _Forgotten Trouble._ (Of course, I'm sure many of you knew that already from looking at my profile... That is, if you actually looked...)

Until our paths cross again!

Rubi-chan


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